Program, server apparatus, and game system

ABSTRACT

A server apparatus, which may be configured to execute a step of storing one or more first game content associated with a plurality of users, a step of selecting two or more users from among the plurality of users, an establishment step of establishing association between each user and a second game content, and a step of executing a first game part on the basis of the second game content of which association with each user may be established and a user operation on the terminal device used by each user. The second game content associated with the first user among the two or more users may be selected from among one or more first game content associated with the first user and one or more first game content associated with the second user among the two or more users.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/701,974, filed on Sep. 12, 2017, entitled “Program, server apparatus,and game system,” which in turn claims priority to Japanese PatentApplication No. JP2016178262A, filed on Sep. 13, 2016, the entirecontents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a program, a server apparatus, and a gamesystem.

Description of the Related Art

In the related art, in a game executed by an information processingdevice, a multi-player configuration where a game progresses in responseto operations by a plurality of users is known. For example, JapanesePatent No. 5833789 discloses a cooperative multi-player configurationwhere a plurality of users cooperatively play a battle against a commonenemy character.

In games in the related art, a multi-player configuration where aplurality of users simultaneously play and a single-player configurationwhere the user plays alone are known. For example, a game with amulti-player configuration is appropriate for activating communicationbetween users. Therefore, it is desirable to give the users a motivationfor performing a multi-player mode.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention made in view of such circumstances is to provide aprogram, a server apparatus, and a game system that give a user amotivation for performing multi-player in a game employing amulti-player configuration.

According to an exemplary embodiment, there may be provided a programwhich may cause a server apparatus providing a game to a plurality ofterminal devices used by a plurality of users to execute: a step ofstoring one or more first game content associated with a user for eachof the plurality of users; a selection step of selecting two or moreusers from among the plurality of users; an establishment step ofestablishing association between the user and a second game content foreach of the two or more users; and a step of executing a first game partcommon to the two or more users on the basis of the second game contentof which association with each of the two or more users may beestablished and a user operation for the two or more terminal devicesused by the two or more users, wherein the second game contentassociated with the first user among the two or more users in theestablishment step may be a game content selected from among one or morefirst game content associated with the first user and one or more firstgame content associated with the second user among the two or moreusers.

According to another exemplary embodiment, there may be provided aserver apparatus providing a game to a plurality of terminal devicesused by a plurality of users, including: a storage unit which may storeone or more first game content associated with a user for each of theplurality of users; and a control unit, wherein the control unit: mayselect two or more users from among the plurality of users; may executean establishment process for establishing association between the userand a second game content for each of the two or more users; and mayexecute a first game part common to the two or more users on the basisof the second game content of which association with each of the two ormore users may be established and a user operation for the two or moreterminal devices used by the two or more users, and wherein the secondgame content associated with the first user among the two or more usersin the establishment process may be a game content selected from amongone or more first game content associated with the first user and one ormore first game content associated with the second user among the two ormore users.

According to still another exemplary embodiment, there may be provided agame system including: a plurality of terminal devices respectively usedby a plurality of users; and a server apparatus providing a game to theplurality of terminal devices, wherein the server apparatus: may storeone or more first game content associated with a user for each of theplurality of users; may select two or more users from among theplurality of users; and may execute an establishment process forestablishing association between the user and a second game content foreach of the two or more users, wherein each of the terminal devices usedby the two or more users may transmit information based on a useroperation on the terminal device to the server apparatus, wherein theserver apparatus may execute a first game part common to the two or moreusers on the basis of the second game content of which association witheach of the two or more users may be established and the informationreceived from each of the terminal devices, and wherein the second gamecontent associated with the first user among the two or more users inthe establishment process may be a game content selected from among oneor more first game content associated with the first user and one ormore first game content associated with the second user among the two ormore users.

According to a program, a server apparatus, and a game system accordingto embodiments of the invention, it may be possible to give a user amotivation for performing multi-player.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a game system according to anembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating information on characters;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating information on items;

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating information on a user;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating information on a first game part;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a matching screendisplayed on a terminal device;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a matching screendisplayed on a terminal device;

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a matching screendisplayed on a terminal device;

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a matching screendisplayed on a terminal device;

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a result screendisplayed on a terminal device; and

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating operations of a server apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, a number of exemplary embodiments may be described.

First, a game system 10 according to an embodiment of the invention willbe described with reference to FIG. 1. The game system 10 may beconfigured to include a server apparatus 11 and a plurality of terminaldevices 12. Three of the plurality of terminal devices 12 areillustrated in FIG. 1 for the convenience, but the number of terminaldevices 12 may be two or more.

The server apparatus 11 may be, for example, an information processingdevice such as a server that may be to be managed by a game manager. Theserver apparatus 11 provides a game (game data) to the terminal device12 that may be to be used by each user. In addition, the terminal device12 may be an information processing device such as a mobile phone, asmartphone, a tablet terminal, a PC, a game device, or the like. Theterminal device 12 may execute the game provided from the serverapparatus 11. In this manner, the server apparatus 11 and the terminaldevice 12 cooperatively control the game that may be provided to theuser of the terminal device 12.

Herein, the outline of the game according to the embodiment will bedescribed. The game according to the embodiment may be a game in which auser can play various game parts. At least a portion of the various gameparts are executed using by a game content.

The game content may be an electronic data that may be used for a game,and the game content may include, for example, an arbitrary medium suchas a card, an item, a ticket, a character, and an avatar. In addition,the game content may be an electronic data that can be acquired, owned,used, managed, exchanged, combined, strengthened, sold, discarded,donated, or the like in the game by the user, but the game content maynot be limited to the game content that may be specified in thisspecification.

Hereinafter, unless otherwise stated, a “game content owned by a user”denotes a game content associated with a user ID uniquely identifyingthe user as a first game content. Moreover, the phrase “to assign a gamecontent to a user” denotes a step of associating a game content with auser ID as a first game content. In addition, the phrase “to discard agame content owned by a user” denotes a step of associating between auser ID and a first game content. In addition, the phrase “to consume agame content owned by a user” denotes generating some effect orinfluence in a game according to cancellation of association between auser ID and a first game content. In addition, the phrase “to sell agame content owned by a user” denotes canceling association between auser ID and a first game content and associating another game content(for example, a virtual coin, an item, or the like) with the user ID asa first game content. In addition, the phrase “to transfer a gamecontent owned by a user A to a user B” denotes canceling associationbetween a user ID of a user A and a first game content and to associatethe game content with a user ID of a user B as a first game content.

A game part may be a content that the user can play in a game, and agame part may include, for example, a quest, a mission, a mini game, agame content that is acquired, a virtual space search event, and abattle event against an opponent (for example, another user, an enemycharacter, an enemy building, or the like) and other events. Forexample, in a case where it may be determined that one or morepredetermined conditions (game tasks) set for each game part has beensuccessfully achieved, a predetermined reward such as a game content anda virtual coin may be assigned to the user. An arbitrary taskcorresponding to the content of the game part, such as a task of winninga battle against an enemy character and a task of reaching a goal pointin a virtual space can be employed as the game tasks. In addition,achieving a specific task (complete task) among one or more game tasksset in the game part may also be referred to as clearing the game part.In other words, in a case where the complete task may be successfullyachieved in the game part, it may be determined that the game part iscleared, and the game part may be ended.

In the embodiment, the game part may include a game part forsingle-player and a game part for multi-player. The game part forsingle-player may be a game part (for example, a game part for oneperson) that may be executed on the basis of user operation on oneterminal device 12 used by one user. One terminal device 12 alone mayexecute the game part for single-player, or one terminal device 12 andthe server apparatus 11 cooperatively execute the game part forsingle-player. On the other hand, the game part for multi-player may bea game part that may be executed on the basis of user operations on twoor more terminal devices 12 used by two or more users and may be commonto the two or more users (for example, a game part for a plurality ofpersons) and. The game part that may be common to that two or more usersmay be, for example, a game part to which at least a portion of theprogress processing, the processing result, and the like of the gamepart may be commonly applied to the two or more users. The two or moreterminal devices 12 cooperatively execute a game part for multi-player,or the two or more terminal devices 12 and the server apparatus 11cooperatively execute a game part for multi-player.

Hereinafter, the game part for multi-player may also be referred to as afirst game part. In the embodiment, the first game part may be a gamepart in which, for example, up to three users cooperatively play abattle against a common opponent.

As an outline, in the game according to the embodiment, each of the twoor more users who play the first game part plays the game part by usingone of the two types of game content. The two types of game content are,for example, characters and items that are provided to the characters.Each of the two or more users may select a character to use from amongthe characters owned by each of the two or more users. On the otherhand, each of the two or more users can select an item to be used by theuser from among items owned by the user and items owned by other users.Namely, each of the two or more users who play the first game part canborrow an item owned by another user to play the first game part.According to such a configuration, since a user has an opportunity touse an item unowned by the user through the first game part formulti-player, the user can be given a motivation for multi-player.

(Configuration of Server Apparatus 11)

Next, the configuration of the server apparatus 11 may be described. Theserver apparatus 11 may be configured to include a server communicationunit 13, a server storage unit 14, and a server control unit 15.

The server communication unit 13 may be an interface that communicateswith an external device by wireless or wired communication and performstransmission and reception of information. For example, the servercommunication unit may include a wireless LAN (Local Area Network)communication module, a wired LAN communication module, or the like. Theserver communication unit 13 can transmit and receive information to andfrom the terminal device 12 via a network 16 such as the Internet.

The server storage unit 14 may include, for example, a primary storagedevice and a secondary storage device, and may be capable of storingvarious pieces of information and programs necessary for providing andcontrolling a game. For example, the server storage unit 14 may includea semiconductor memory, a magnetic memory, an optical memory, or thelike. For example, the server storage unit 14 may store information onvarious game content, information on a plurality of users, andinformation on various game parts.

(Information on Characters)

The information on characters among various game content may bedescribed with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 illustrates information onthree characters. The information on each character may include at leastone of character ID, character name, equipment type, degree of rareness,level, HP (Hit Point), attack power, defense power, attribute, andskill.

The character ID may be information capable of uniquely identifying thecharacter. For example, the character ID may be stored in advance in theserver storage unit 14. Alternatively, when the server apparatus 11allows a user to acquire the character, the character ID may bedetermined.

The character name may be information indicating the name of acharacter. Unlike the character ID, the character name may not uniquelyidentify the character. The initial value of the character name may bestored in advance in the server storage unit 14. The character name maychange according to the play of the game by the user who acquired thecharacter.

The equipment type may be information indicating the type of item withwhich the character can be equipped. In the embodiment, the type of itemmay include, for example, a sword, a spear, a gun, and the like, but thetype of item may not be limited thereto. The attack motion of thecharacter may change depending on the type of equipment. The initialvalue of the equipment type may be stored in advance in the serverstorage unit 14. The equipment type may change according to the play ofthe game by the user who acquired the character.

The degree of rareness may be information indicating a degree ofrareness of a character. The initial value of the degree of rareness maybe stored in advance in the server storage unit 14. The degree ofrareness may change according to the play of the game by the user whoacquired the character.

The level may be, for example, information indicating a degree of growthof the character. The initial value of the level may be, for example, 1.The level may increase according to the play of the game by the user whoacquired the character. As the level increases, at least a portion ofthe information on the character, such as HP, attack power, defensepower, attribute, or skill may change as described later. By changing atleast a portion of the information on the character, the character maybe strengthened as described later. Therefore, in the embodiment, thehigher the level of the character used for the game part, the moreadvantageous for the user.

HP may be, for example, information indicating the vital power of acharacter. The HP may include, for example, a current value and an upperlimit value. In the embodiment, when the character may be damaged by theattack of the opponent, the current value of HP decreases by the amountof damage. In addition, when the character receives recovery magic ofthe teammate character, the current value of HP may increase by therecovery amount. In addition, when HP decreases to zero, it may bedetermined that the character becomes inoperative or fails to clear thegame part. Therefore, in the embodiment, the larger the HP of thecharacter used for the game part, the more advantageous it may be forthe user. As the level increases, the upper limit value of the HP canincrease.

The attack power may be information that contributes to the amount ofdamage given to an opponent by, for example, character attack. Thegreater the attack power, the greater the amount of damage given to theopponent. Therefore, in the embodiment, the greater the attack power ofthe character used for the game part, the more advantageous it may befor the user. As the level increases, the attack power can alsoincrease.

The defense power may be information that contributes to the amount ofdamage that a character receives by an opponent's attack, for example.The greater the defense power, the less the amount of damage given bythe opponent. Therefore, in the embodiment, the greater the defensepower of the character used for the game part, the more advantageous itmay be for the user. As the level increases, the defense power can alsoincrease.

The attribute may be information indicating superiority and inferiorityrelationships among characters playing a battle. The attribute indicatesat least one attribute of, for example, fire, tree, and waterattributes. For example, a character with fire attribute may havegreater damage to a character with tree attribute than a usual characterand may have smaller damage to a character with water attribute than ausual character.

The skill may be information indicating an effect unique to thecharacter that can be exhibited during the execution of the first gamepart. For example, a skill having an effect of increasing or decreasingparameters such as character's HP and attack power, a skill having aneffect of decreasing damage received from enemy characters, and a skillhaving an effect of decreasing the HP of the enemy character, and thelike, but the skill may not be limited to such exemplary embodiments.

The information on a character may not be limited to the above-describedinformation, and the information on a character may include arbitraryinformation unique to the character. For example, the information on acharacter may further include information indicating another characterhaving a predetermined relationship with the character. Anothercharacter having a predetermined relationship may include, for example,another character to be consumed to generate the character, anothercharacter which can be generated by consuming the character, and thelike. More specifically, in a case where a character B may be evolved orawakened to become a character C, the character B and the character Cmay have a predetermined relationship with each other.

(Information on Items)

The information on items among various game content may be describedwith reference to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 may illustrate information on threeitems. The information on each item may include, for example, at leastone of item ID, item name, item type, degree of rareness, level, HP,attack power, defense power, attribute, and skill.

The item ID may be information capable of uniquely identifying an item.For example, the item ID may be stored in advance in the server storageunit 14. Alternatively, the server apparatus 11 may determine the itemID when allowing an item to be acquired by any user.

The item name may be information indicating a name of an item. Unlikethe item ID, the item name may not uniquely identify the item. Theinitial value of the item name may be stored in advance in the serverstorage unit 14. The item name may change according to the play of thegame by the user who acquired the item.

The item type may be information indicating a type of an item. In theembodiment, the type of an item may include a sword, a spear, a gun, andthe like as described above, but the type of an item may not be limitedthereto.

The degree of rareness may be information indicating the degree ofrarity of an item. The initial value of degree of rareness may be storedin advance in the server storage unit 14. The degree of rareness maychange according to the play of the game by a user who acquired theitem.

The level may be, for example, information indicating a degree of growthof the item. The initial value of the level may be, for example, 1. Thelevel may increase according to the play of the game by the user whoacquired the item. As the level may increase, at least a portion of theinformation on the items such as HP, attack power, defense power,attribute, and skill may change, as described later. By changing atleast part of the information on the item, the item may be strengthenedas described later. Therefore, in the embodiment, the higher the levelof the item used for the game part, the more advantageous for the user.

The HP, the attack power, and the defense power are information thatchanges the HP, the attack power, and the defense power of the characterequipped with the item, respectively. In the embodiment, the values ofthe HP, the attack power, and the defense power of the item are added tothe values of the HP, the attack power, and the defense power of thecharacter equipped with the item, respectively. Therefore, in theembodiment, the greater the HP, the attack power, and the defense powerof the item used for the game part, the more advantageous it may be forthe user. As the level may increase, the HP, the attack power, and thedefense power can also increase.

The attribute indicates at least one attribute of, for example, fire,tree, and water attributes. For example, a character equipped with afire-attribute item may inflict a greater damage to a tree-attributecharacter than a usual character, and may inflict a smaller damage to awater-attribute character than a usual character. In a case where theattribute of an item is the same as the attribute of a characterequipped with the item, the damage given to another character by thecharacter may increase. Therefore, in the embodiment, it may beadvantageous for the user that the attribute of the item is the same asthe attribute of the character equipped with the item.

The skill may be information indicating an effect unique to an item thatcan be exhibited during the execution of the first game part. Forexample, in a case where the item and the character have the sameattribute or different attribute, the skill may include a skill havingan effect of increasing/decreasing a parameter such as the HP and theattack power of a character, a skill having an effect of decreasing thedamage received from an enemy character, or a skill having an effect ofreducing the HP of an enemy character, but the skill may not be limitedto such exemplary embodiments.

The information on the item may not be limited to the informationdescribed above, and the information may include arbitrary informationunique to the item. For example, the information on the item may furtherinclude information indicating another item having a predeterminedrelationship with the item. Another item having a predeterminedrelationship may include, for example, another item that may be consumedto generate an item and another item that can be generated by consumingthe item. Specifically, in a case where an item B may be refined orevolved to become an item C, the item B and the item C may have apredetermined relationship with each other.

(Information on Users)

The information on the user may be described with reference to FIG. 4.FIG. 4 may illustrate information on three users. The information oneach user may include, for example, a user ID, a first game content, asecond game content, and history information.

The user ID may be information capable of uniquely identifying the user.Hereinafter, the user ID may also be simply referred to as a user.

The first game content may be information indicating a game contentowned by the user in the game. In a case where the game content may beacquired by the user, the game content may be associated with the useras the first game content and stored in the server storage unit 14. Inthe embodiment, the first game content may include characters and itemsowned by the user.

The second game content may be information indicating a game content tobe used by the user in the first game part. In the embodiment, thesecond game content may include one character and one item. In anotherembodiment, the second game content may include one or more charactersand one or more items. As may be described later, the first user canborrow the item that may be the first game content of the second user.The borrowed item can be used in the first game part as the second gamecontent of the first user. In such a case, one game content may beassociated with the second user as the first game content, and at thesame time, the game content may be associated with the first user as thesecond game content. Details of the process of associating the secondgame content to the user may be described later.

The history information may include various pieces of information on theplay history of the game played by the user.

For example, the history information may include the number of times ofacquisition of the game content by the user, the acquisition frequency,the date and time of acquisition, the number of times of login to thegame system 10 by the user, the login frequency, the date and time oflogin, and the like. In such a case, the user's tendency regarding theplay of the game can be determined on the basis of the historyinformation. For example, it may be determined that a user having alarge (high) parameter such as the number of times of acquisition of thegame content, the acquisition frequency, the number of times of loginsto the game system 10, or the login frequency may be more active than auser having a small (low) parameter.

In addition, for example, the history information may includeinformation on the history of item lending and borrowing by the user.The Information on the history of lending and borrowing of items mayinclude, for example, the number of times of lending and borrowing ofitems, the frequency of lending and borrowing, the date and time oflending and borrowing, information on lent and borrowed items,information on other users who borrowed items of the user, informationon other users who lent items to the user, and the like.

The information on the user may not be limited to the above-describedinformation, and the information may include arbitrary informationunique to the user, such as the number of virtual coins owned by theuser in the game and the user level. The user level may be a parameterthat can be increased, for example, according to the play of the game bythe user. Therefore, the user level can be an index illustrating theproficiency level of the user with respect to the game.

(Information on First Game Part)

The information on the first game parts among various game parts may bedescribed with reference to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 may illustrate information onthree first game parts. The information on each first game part mayinclude at least one of, for example, a first game part ID, anadvantageous item type, an advantageous attribute, and game data.

The first game part ID may be information capable of uniquelyidentifying the first game part.

The advantageous item type may be information indicating an item typethat may be advantageous for achieving the game task of the first gamepart. For example, the advantageous item type may be stored in advancein the server storage unit 14. Alternatively, the server apparatus 11may automatically determine an advantageous item type on the basis ofgame data to be described later. For example, the server apparatus 11may determine the advantageous item type as “gun” for the first gamepart in which a user plays a battle against an enemy character which maybe weak against a long-range attack may be performed.

The advantageous attribute may be information indicating an attributeadvantageous for achieving the game task of the first game part. Forexample, the advantageous attribute may be stored in advance in theserver storage unit 14. Alternatively, the server apparatus 11 mayautomatically determine an advantageous attribute on the basis of gamedata to be described later. For example, the server apparatus 11 maydetermine the advantageous attribute as “fire” for the first game partin which a user plays a battle against an enemy character which may beweak against the fire attribute may be performed.

The game data may include various pieces of information necessary forexecuting the first game part. For example, the game data may includeinformation on enemy characters that are opponents common to a pluralityof users, map information of a virtual space (for example, a dungeon) tobe searched, game tasks, and rewards (for example, game content) grantedto users according to processing results of the first game part, and thelike.

The server control unit 15 illustrated in FIG. 1 may be configured toinclude at least one processor among one or more general-purposeprocessors that realize specific functions by reading a specific programand one or more dedicated processors specialized for specificprocessing. The server control unit 15 may control whole operations ofthe server apparatus 11.

For example, the server control unit 15 may transmit and receivesinformation through the server communication unit 13. In addition, theserver control unit 15 may store information on the various gamecontent, information on a plurality of users, and information on variousgame parts in the server storage unit 14.

In addition, the server control unit 15 may perform various processes onvarious game parts. For example, the server control unit 15 may executethe first game part in cooperation with two or more terminal devices 12.Hereinafter, this may be described in detail.

The server control unit 15 may perform a matching process of matchingtwo or more users who play the first game part. Specifically, uponreceiving a request for generation of a user group from the terminaldevice 12 of the user, the server control unit 15 may newly generate auser group including the user. In the embodiment, a plurality of usergroups may exist simultaneously. In addition, each user group mayinclude, for example, up to three users. Two or more users included inone user group are determined as the users who play the first game partin the multi-player format. Hereinafter, the two or more users includedin one user group may also be referred to as two or more matched users.

In one example, the server control unit 15 may receive the request forgeneration of the user group from the terminal device 12 of the user Aand may newly generate the user group A including the user A.

Subsequently, the server control unit 15 may transmit matching screendisplay instruction to the terminal device 12 of the user who may havetransmitted the request for generation of the user group. In thefollowing description, it may be assumed that the screen displayinstruction may include various pieces of information necessary for theterminal device 12 receiving the display instruction to display thescreen. The server control unit 15 causes objects to be displayed on thescreen on the terminal device 12 by transmitting the screen displayinstruction.

For example, the server control unit 15 allows the terminal device 12 ofthe user A to cause objects to be displayed on a matching screen.Details of the matching screen may be described later.

Subsequently, upon receiving the request for addition to the user groupfrom the terminal device 12 of the user not included in any user group,the server control unit 15 may select one user group from among theplurality of user groups on the basis of a predetermined algorithm. Theserver control unit 15 may add the user to the selected one user group.Alternatively, the server control unit 15 may select one or more usergroups from among the plurality of user groups. In such a case, theserver control unit 15 may allow the terminal device 12 of the user todisplay information on the selected one or more user groups and allowthe user to select any one of the user groups. In a case where theserver control unit 15 receives the information indicating one usergroup selected by the user from the terminal device 12, the servercontrol unit 15 may add the user to the user group.

As a predetermined algorithm, on the basis of the information on theuser of the terminal device 12 that transmitted the request for additionto the user group and the information on the plurality of users includedin the plurality of user groups, any one user group may be selected fromamong the plurality of user groups.

For example, the server control unit 15 may preferentially select a usergroup including another user of which the number of game content or thelevel of the owned game content or the user level may be close withrespect to the user of the terminal device 12 that may have transmittedthe request for addition to the user group. According to such aconfiguration, for example, the users of which degrees of growth ofowned game content are closer or the users of which proficiencies withrespect to the game are close are preferentially matched. For thisreason, a sense of impartiality occurs between the two or more users whoplay the first game part, and thus, formation of cooperativerelationships can be facilitated.

Alternatively, as the number or level of an item owned by the user ofthe terminal device 12 that may have transmitted the request foraddition to the user group or the user level may be smaller, the servercontrol unit 15 may preferentially select a user group including anotheruser of which the number or level of an owned item or the user level maybe large. According to such a configuration, for example, beginners andexperts of the game may be preferentially matched. Therefore, thebeginners of the game can be given a motivation for playing the firstgame part.

The predetermined algorithm may not be limited to the above-mentionedone. For example, the terminal device 12 may transmit to the serverapparatus 11 a signal (second signal) indicating an item selected inresponse to user operation on the terminal device 12 together with therequest for addition to the user group. In such a case, the servercontrol unit 15 may preferentially select a user group including anotheruser who owns the item indicated by the second signal from among theplurality of user groups. According to such a configuration, the user ofthe terminal device 12 that transmits the request for addition to theuser group may be preferentially matched with another user who owns theitem which the user wants to borrow. Therefore, the probability that theuser can borrow the item from another user may be increased. Thus, forexample, a user who wants to use an unowned item can be given amotivation for performing multi-player.

Alternatively, the terminal device 12 may transmit to the serverapparatus 11 a request for automatic selection of a predetermined itemalong with the request for addition to the user group. In such a case,upon receiving the request for selection from the terminal device 12,the server control unit 15 may extract one or more items that areadvantageous for playing the first game part among the plurality ofitems on the basis of predetermined information.

Herein, the predetermined information may include the information on theuser of the terminal device 12. In such a case, the server control unit15 may preferentially extract, for example, an item having the sameattribute as the character associated with the user as the first gamecontent as an item advantageous for playing the first game part.Alternatively, the predetermined information may include the informationon the first game part. In such a case, the server control unit 15 maypreferentially extract an item having a type indicated by anadvantageous item type included in the information on the first gamepart or an item having an attribute indicated by an advantageousattribute as an item advantageous for the play of the first game part.

Then, the server control unit 15 preferentially may select a user groupincluding another user who owns the extracted item. According to such aconfiguration, the user of the terminal device 12 that may transmit therequest for addition to the user group may be preferentially matchedwith another user who owns an item advantageous for playing the firstgame part. Therefore, the probability that the user can borrow the itemfrom another user may be increased. Therefore, for example, a user whowants to use an item advantageous for playing the first game part can begiven a motivation for performing multi-player. In another embodiment,instead of the server control unit 15, the terminal device 12 mayextract one or more items that are advantageous for playing the firstgame part from among a plurality of items on the basis of predeterminedinformation. In such a case, the terminal device 12 may transmit asecond signal indicating the extracted item to the server apparatus 11.

In one example, the server control unit 15 may receive a request foraddition to the user group from each of the terminal devices 12 of theusers B and C and may select the user group A including the user A fromamong the plurality of user groups. The server control unit 15 may addthe users B and C to the selected user group A. In other words, theserver control unit 15 may match the users A to C as two or more userswho play the first game part in the multi-player format.

Then, the server control unit 15 may transmit matching screen displayinstruction to the terminal device 12 of the user who may havetransmitted the request for addition to the user group. The matchingscreens displayed by the terminal devices 12 of the two or more usersincluded in one user group may be substantially the same. Upon receivingthe request for exclusion from the user group from the terminal device12 of the user included in the user group, the server control unit 15may exclude the user from the user group.

The addition of a user to a user group and the exclusion of a user froma user group may be executed at an arbitrary timing until a userincluded in the user group starts a first game part.

In one example, the server control unit 15 may display substantially thesame matching screen on each of the terminal devices 12 of the users Ato C included in the user group A. Then, the matching process may beterminated.

In this manner, the server control unit 15 may select two or more userswho play the first game part from among a plurality of users by thematching process. Hereinafter, the user group A may be described.

After executing the matching process, the server control unit 15 maystore each user included in the user group A and the second game contentin association with each other in the server storage unit 14. Forexample, the server control unit 15 may select and change the secondgame content to be associated with each user in response to useroperation on each terminal device 12 of each user.

Subsequently, upon receiving the first signal from the terminal device12 of the user, the server control unit 15 may establish the associationbetween the user and the second game content. Hereinafter, a state inwhich the association between the user and the second game content maybe established may also be referred to as an established state. Theserver control unit 15 may prohibit the change of the second gamecontent associated with the user who may be in the established state.The server control unit 15 may cancel the established state of the userin response to the request from the terminal device 12 of the user whomay be in the established state.

In the embodiment, a character associated with each user included in theuser group A as the second game content may be selected from amongcharacters associated with the user as the first game content. On theother hand, an item associated with each user as a second game contentmay be selected from among an item associated with the user as a firstgame content and one or more items excluding an item which may be asecond game content of which association with another user may beestablished among a plurality of items associated with another user asthe first game content. According to such a configuration, for example,a user A can borrow an item that a user B does not use in the first gamepart among a plurality of items owned by the user B in the game, and theitem can be used in the first game part. Hereinafter, for theconvenience of description, in a case where an item associated with theuser as the second game content may be an item associated with anotheruser as the first game content, the item may also be referred to as a“borrowed item”. Details of the process by which the user borrows anitem of another user may be described later.

In one example, the item that may be the second game content of the userA may be an item selected from the first game content of the user B,i.e. a borrowed item. On the other hand, items that are the second gamecontent of the users B and C are items selected from the first gamecontent of the users B and C, respectively. In addition, the associationbetween each of the users A to C and the second game content may beestablished.

Subsequently, upon receiving the request for start of the first gamepart from the terminal device 12 of any user included in the user groupA, the server control unit 15 may start the first game part. The servercontrol unit 15 may execute the first game part on the basis of thesecond game content associated with each user included in the user groupA and the user operation for each terminal device 12 used by each user.In the embodiment, in the first game part, each user plays a battleagainst an enemy character common to the users A to C by using acharacter and an item that may be the second game content of user's own.Subsequently, for example, in a case where the server control unit 15determines that the user A to C may have succeeded or failed inachievement of the complete task of winning against the enemy character,the server control unit 15 ends the first game part. The server controlunit 15 grants the users A to C rewards corresponding to the processingresult of the first game part, for example, success or failure inachievement of the complete task.

Upon ending the first game part, the server control unit 15 may cancelthe user group A. In addition, the server control unit 15 may cancel theassociation between each of the users A to C and the second gamecontent. This corresponds to a mechanism in which the borrowed item ofeach user may be returned to an original user. In this manner, a seriesof processes for allowing the two or more users to play the first gamepart in the multi-player format may be ended. In another embodiment, ina case where another first game part may be to be executed continuouslyafter one first game part may be ended, another first game part may bestarted without cancellation of the user group A and cancellation ofassociation between each of the users A to C and the second gamecontent.

In another embodiment, in a case where communication between theterminal device 12 of at least one user among the users A to C and theserver apparatus 11 may be disconnected during the execution of thefirst game part, the server control unit 15 may end the first game part.In this case, the server control unit 15 may perform a process ofcanceling the user group A and a process of canceling the associationbetween each of the users A to C and the second game content.Alternatively, the server control unit 15 may automatically operate acharacter of the user of the terminal device 12 with which communicationof the server apparatus 11 may be disconnected and may continue toexecute the first game part. In such a case, the server control unit 15may cancel the association between the user of the terminal device 12with which communication of the server apparatus 11 may be disconnectedand the second game content or may not cancel the association.

In addition, after the execution of the first game part, the servercontrol unit 15 may preferably allow the terminal device 12 of the userA who may have played the first game part by using the borrowed item todisplay the information on the second game part. The second game partmay be an arbitrary game part in which a user can acquire the same itemas the borrowed item or another item having the above-describedpredetermined relationship with the borrowed item among various gameparts including the first game part and the game part for single-player.According to the processing result of the second game part, the sameitem as the borrowed item or another item having the predeterminedrelationship with the borrowed item may be assigned to the user.

In the embodiment, the second game part may include an event to which atleast one game content selected from among the plurality of game contentincluding items being the same as or having a predetermined relationshipwith the borrowed item may be assigned to the user. In the second gamepart, the assignment of the game content to the user may be executedaccording to the consumption of virtual coins or the predetermined gamecontent owned by the user in the game. Alternatively, the second gamepart may be a first game part or a game part for single-player in whichthe item being the same as or having a predetermined relationship withthe borrowed item may be included in the reward.

The information on the second game part may include, for example, a GUI(Graphical User Interface) for receiving user operation for starting thesecond game part. The server control unit 15 may execute the second gamepart in response to the user operation on the GUI displayed on theterminal device 12 of the user A. According to the processing result ofthe second game part, the server control unit 15 can associate the itembeing the same as or having a predetermined relationship with theborrowed item with the user A as the first game content.

(Configuration of Terminal Device 12)

Next, the configuration of the terminal device 12 may be described. Asillustrated in FIG. 1, the terminal device 12 may be configured toinclude a terminal communication unit 17, a terminal storage unit 18, adisplay unit 19, an input unit 20, and a terminal control unit 21.

The terminal communication unit 17 may be an interface that communicateswith an external device by wireless or wired communication and maytransmit and may receive information. For example, the terminalcommunication unit 17 may include a wireless communication modulecorresponding to a mobile communication standard such as LTE (Long TermEvolution) (registered trademark), a wireless LAN communication module,a wired LAN communication module, or the like. The terminalcommunication unit 17 may transmit and may receive information with theserver apparatus 11 via the network 16.

The terminal storage unit 18 may include, for example, a primary storagedevice and a secondary storage device and can store various pieces ofinformation and programs necessary for the processing of a game providedfrom the server apparatus 11. For example, the terminal storage unit 18may include a semiconductor memory, a magnetic memory, an opticalmemory, or the like. For example, the terminal storage unit 18 may storea portion or all of the above-described information on various gamecontent, the information on a plurality of users, and the information onvarious game parts. For example, a portion or all of these pieces of theinformation are retrieved from the server apparatus 11 by the terminalcontrol unit 21.

The display unit 19 may be, for example, a display device such as aliquid crystal display or an organic EL display and can display variousscreens.

The input unit 20 may be, for example, an input interface including atouch panel provided integrally with the display unit 19 and can receiveuser input to the terminal device 12. The input unit 20 may includephysical keys or may further include various input interfaces includinga pointing device such as a mouse and the like.

The terminal control unit 21 may be configured to include at least oneprocessor among one or more general-purpose processors that realize aspecific function by reading a specific program and one or morededicated processors specialized for specific processing. The terminalcontrol unit 21 may control whole operations of the terminal device 12.For example, the terminal control unit 21 may transmit and may receiveinformation through the terminal communication unit 17. In addition, theterminal control unit 21 may execute (activates) an application of agame in response to operation of the user. In addition, when acquiring ascreen display instruction from the server apparatus 11 through theterminal communication unit 17, the terminal control unit 21 may displaythe screen on the display unit 19 or updates the screen on the basis ofthe instruction. In addition, the terminal control unit 21 may transmitthe information based on the user operation received through the inputunit 20 to the server apparatus 11 through the terminal communicationunit 17.

In addition, the terminal control unit 21 may perform various processeson various game parts. For example, the terminal control unit 21 mayexecute the first game part in cooperation with the server apparatus 11and one or more other terminal devices 12. Hereinafter, this may bedescribed in detail.

The terminal control unit 21 can transmit the above-described requestfor generation of the user group or the request for addition to the usergroup to the server apparatus 11. The terminal control unit 21 mayreceive matching screen display instruction transmitted by the serverapparatus 11 in response to the request for generation of the user groupor the request for addition to the user group. The terminal control unit21 may display the matching screen on the display unit 19 on the basisof the received display instruction.

Hereinafter, operations of the server apparatus 11 and the terminaldevice 12, which are executed with the matching screen displayed on thedisplay unit 19, may be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 9.Herein, an example where the terminal control unit 21 of the terminaldevice 12 of the user A transmits a request for generation of a usergroup to the server apparatus 11 and a user group A including only theuser A is newly generated may be described.

FIG. 6 may illustrate a matching screen displayed on the terminal device12 of the user A after transmitting the request for generation of theuser group. Three user frames 22, an establish button 23, a borrowbutton 24, and a start button 25 are displayed on the matching screen.

Each user frame 22 may be an area for displaying information on eachuser included in the user group A. In FIG. 6, the information on theuser A may be displayed in the upper user frame 22. For the informationon the user A, for example, a user name and a character A which may be asecond game content associated with the user A, and an item A aredisplayed. On the other hand, the middle user frame 22 and the loweruser frame 22 are blank.

The user frame 22 in which the information on the user A may bedisplayed may function as a GUI for receiving user operation forchanging the second game content of the user A. In response to the useroperation on the user frame 22, the terminal control unit 21 may selecteach one from the characters and items that are the first game contentof the user A. The terminal control unit 21 changes the character A anditem A which are the second game content of the user A to the selectedcharacter and item, respectively. In this manner, the second gamecontent of the user A may be selected from the first game content of theuser A in response to the user operation on the user frame 22. When thesecond game content of the user A is changed, the terminal control unit21 notifies the server apparatus 11 of the changed second game content.Upon receiving the notification from the terminal device 12 of the userA, the server control unit 15 associates the changed second game contentwith the user A and updates the information on the user A stored in theserver storage unit 14.

The establish button 23 may be a GUI for receiving user operation forestablishing the association between the user A and the second gamecontent. The terminal control unit 21 may transmit the above-describedfirst signal to the server apparatus 11 in response to the useroperation on the establish button 23. Upon receiving the first signalfrom the terminal device 12 of the user A, the server control unit 15may establish the association between the user A and the second gamecontent. In addition, in a case where the terminal control unit 21detects the user operation on the establish button 23 when the user Amay be in the established state, the terminal control unit 21 maytransmit a request for cancellation of the established state of the userA to the server apparatus 11. In this case, upon receiving the requestfor cancellation of the established state from the terminal device 12 ofthe user A, the server control unit 15 may cancel the established stateof the user A.

The borrow button 24 may be a GUI for receiving user operation forborrowing an item owned by another user included in the user group A. Inthe state illustrated in FIG. 6, since any user other than the user Amay not be included in the user group A, the server control unit 15 orthe terminal control unit 21 of the terminal device 12 of the user Atemporarily stop receiving the user operation on the borrow button 24.In a case where the reception of the user operation may be stopped, theborrow button 24 may be displayed in a mode different from the normalmode, for example, the borrow button 24 may be displayed darker (grayedout) than the normal time. The processes in response to the useroperation on the borrow button 24 may be described later.

The start button 25 may be a GUI for receiving user operation forstarting the first game part. Only in a case where a predeterminedcondition may be satisfied, the terminal control unit 21 may validatethe reception of the user operation on the start button 25. Thepredetermined condition may include, for example, a condition that thenumber of users included in the user group A may be equal to or largerthan a predetermined value and/or a condition that all the usersincluded in the user group A are in an established state. The terminalcontrol unit 21 may transmit a request for start of the first game partto the server apparatus 11 in response to the user operation on thestart button 25. Upon receiving the request for start of the first gamepart from the terminal device 12 of the user A, the server apparatus 11may start the first game part.

Herein, it may be assumed that, while the user operation on any of theestablish button 23, the borrow button 24, and the start button 25 maynot be detected in the terminal device 12 of the user A, each of theterminal devices 12 of the users B and C may transmit the request foraddition to the user group to the server apparatus 11. The serverapparatus 11 may add the users B and C to the user group A. The serverapparatus 11 may transmit the matching screen display instruction to theterminal devices 12 of the users A to C.

The terminal device 12 of the user A updates the matching screen on thebasis of the received display instruction. FIG. 7 may illustrate anupdated matching screen. As illustrated in FIG. 7, information on theuser B and information on the user C are displayed in the middle userframe 22 and the lower user frame 22, respectively, that are blank inFIG. 6.

On the other hand, the terminal devices 12 of the users B and C displaythe same screen as the matching screen illustrated in FIG. 7, forexample, except that the start button 25 may not be displayed on thebasis of the received display instruction.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, a marker 26 displayed on the user frame 22 inthe middle row may be an image indicating that the association betweenthe user B and the second game content has been established. When theuser B is in the established state, the marker 26 may be displayed oneach of the terminal devices 12 of the users A to C. Namely, FIG. 7 mayillustrate that the user A and the user C are not in the establishedstate, but the user B is in the established state. Hereinafter, the userwho is not in the established state may also be referred to as a firstuser, and the user who is in the established state may also be referredto as a second user.

In a case where the first user and the second user exist in the usergroup A, the server control unit 15 may allow the terminal device 12 ofthe first user to cancel the stop of receiving the user operation on theborrow button 24. For example, in FIG. 6, the borrow button 24 which mayhave been displayed in a display mode different from a usual displaymode may be changed to the normal display mode as illustrated in FIG. 7.In this state, the user operation on the borrow button 24 can bereceived.

Herein, it may be assumed that the terminal control unit 21 of theterminal device 12 of the user A who may be the first user may havereceived the user operation on the borrow button 24. In such a case, theterminal control unit 21 may transmit to the server apparatus 11 arequest for borrowing one or more items excluding the item that may bethe second game content of which association with the user B may beestablished among the plurality of items associated with the user B whomay be the second user as the first game content.

Upon receiving the request for borrowing from the terminal device 12 ofthe user A, the server control unit 15 may extract one or more itemsexcluding the item that may be the second game content of whichassociation with the user B may be established among the plurality ofitems associated with the user B as the first game content. The servercontrol unit 15 may transmit to the terminal device 12 a displayinstruction for allowing each terminal device 12 of the user A toselectably display each of the extracted one or more items. The terminalcontrol unit 21 may select one item from among the extracted anddisplayed one or more items in response to the user operation. Theterminal control unit 21 may change the item to be associated with theuser A as the second game content to the item selected from the item A.The terminal control unit 21 may notify the server apparatus 11 of thesecond game content after the change of the user A. In anotherembodiment where one or more items are associated with one user as thesecond game content, the terminal control unit 21 may select one or moreitems in response to the user operation. In such a case, the terminalcontrol unit 21 may associate the selected item as an additional secondgame content with the user A, and the terminal control unit may changethe item to be associated with the user A as the second game content tothe item selected from the item A. The terminal control unit 21 maynotify the server apparatus 11 of the second game content after additionor change of the user A.

In this manner, the server control unit 15 may extract one or more itemsexcluding the item that is the second game content of which associationwith the user B may be established among the plurality of itemsassociated with the user B as the first game content. According to sucha configuration, for example, the server control unit 15 may temporarilysuppress the association of the item with the user B as the second gamecontent may be duplicated to be associated with the user A as the secondgame content. Therefore, the number of items existing in the game may bemaintained constant, so that the game balance can be appropriatelyadjusted. In addition, according to such a configuration, it may bepossible to allow the user to feel the same feeling as lending andborrowing of actual products among users, and thus, it may be possiblefor the users to easily understand the game.

In addition, according to the above-described configuration, as may bedescribed below, it may be possible to suppress occurrence ofrestriction on use of a game content of a user. For the convenience ofcomparison, considered may be a configuration where an item may be lentto a user A before association between a user B and a second gamecontent may be established. In such a configuration, a situation mayoccur where the user B lent the item that the user wants to use in thefirst game part to the user A earlier due to, for example, an erroneousoperation, and thus, the user B cannot use the item. On the other hand,according to the server apparatus 11 of the embodiment, since the itemmay be lent to the user A after the association between the user B andthe second game part may be established, the occurrence of theabove-described situation can be suppressed.

Alternatively, upon receiving the request for borrowing from theterminal device 12 of the user A, the server control unit 15 may extractall the items associated with the user B as the first game content.

Alternatively, upon receiving the request for borrowing from theterminal device 12 of the user A, on the basis of predeterminedinformation, the server control unit 15 may extract one or more itemsexcluding the item that may be the second game content of whichassociation with the user B may be established among the plurality ofitems associated with the user B as the first game content.

For example, the predetermined information may include the informationon two or more users included in the user group A. For example, theserver control unit 15 preferentially may extract one or more itemshaving the same or different attributes as or from the character or itemassociated with each of the users B and C as the second game contentamong the items associated with the user B as the first game contentexcluding the item that may be the second game content of whichassociation with the user B may be established. According to such aconfiguration, the probability that the attributes of the second gamecontent are unified or dispersed in a well-balanced manner for the twoor more users included in the user group A may be increased.

The server control unit 15 may use information such as level or skillother than the attribute among the information on the user. For example,the server control unit 15 may preferentially extract an item of whichlevel may be large or an item of which skill may be strong among all theitems which are associated with the user B as the first game contentexcluding the items that are second game content of which associationwith the user B may be established. According to such a configuration,the probability that the user A can play the first game part underadvantageous conditions may be improved.

In addition, for example, the server control unit 15 may preferentiallyextract the item which can be equipped by the character associated withthe user A as the second game content and can be advantageous forplaying the first game part among all the items associated with the userB as the first game content excluding the item that may be the secondgame content of which association with the user B may be established. Asdescribed above, it may be advantageous for the user that the attributeof the item may be the same as the attribute of the character equippedwith the item. Therefore, for example, the item having the sameattribute as the character associated with the user A as the second gamecontent may be preferentially extracted.

In addition, for example, the server control unit 15 may selectivelyextract only the item which can be equipped by the character associatedwith the user A as the second game content among all the itemsassociated with the user B as the first game content excluding the itemthat may be the second game content of which association with the user Bmay be established. For example, only the items of the typecorresponding to the equipment type of the character may be extracted.The extracted items that can be equipped by the character may not belimited to a particular type of equipment, and the condition of beingable to be equipped by the character may also be determined on the basisof arbitrary game parameters such as the level of the character or itemor the equipment cost. For example, a character may be able to equip anitem with a higher level or equipment cost when that character has ahigher level or equipment cost.

In addition, for example, the predetermined information may include theinformation on the first game part. For example, the server control unit15 preferentially may extract one or more items having an attributeindicated by the advantageous attribute included in the first game partinformation among all the items associated with the user B as the firstgame content. According to such a configuration, the probability thatthe user A can play the first game part under advantageous conditionsmay be improved.

Herein, it may be assumed that the server control unit 15 may extract anitem C from all the items that are the first game content of the user B.

The server control unit 15 may allow the terminal device 12 of the userA to display the information on the extracted item. FIG. 8 mayillustrate a state in which information 27 on the extracted item C, aYes button 28, and a No button 29 are superimposed and displayed on thematching screen.

The information 27 on the item C may include, for example, an image ofthe item C, an item name, a level, an attack power, a defense power, anattribute, a skill, and a cost. The cost may be information indicatingthe resources of the user A necessary for borrowing the item C. Thecontent of the cost may be stored in advance in the server storage unit14 or may be automatically determined by the server control unit 15 onthe basis of the information on the item C. For example, in the exampleillustrated in FIG. 8, the user A can borrow the item C of the user B byconsuming 20 virtual coins.

The Yes button 28 may be a GUI for receiving user operation forborrowing the item C. The terminal control unit 21 may change the item Aassociated with the user A as the second game content to the item Cowned by the user B in response to the user operation on the Yes button28. In response to the user operation on the Yes button 28, the servercontrol unit 15 updates the information on the user A so that the 20virtual coins owned by the user A are consumed. The server control unit15 may grant a predetermined reward to the user B who owns the item C.The predetermined reward may be predetermined or may be at least aportion of the 20 virtual coins consumed by the user A.

The No button 29 may be a GUI for receiving a user operation forallowing the information 27, the Yes button 28, and the No button 29 onthe item C superimposed to be non-displayed on the matching screen. Inresponse to user operation on the No button 29, the terminal controlunit 21 may allow the information 27 on the item C, the Yes button 28,and the No button 29 to be non-displayed.

Herein, it may be assumed that the terminal control unit 21 may havereceived the user operation on the Yes button 28. Therefore, asdescribed above, the item C of the user B may be associated with theuser A as the second game content. For example, the image of the item Adisplayed on the user frame 22 in the upper row in FIG. 7 may be changedto the image of the item C as illustrated in FIG. 9. As long as the itemassociated with the user A as the second game content may be a borroweditem, the reception of the user operation on the borrow button 24 may betemporarily stopped and the borrow button 24 may displayed in a mode(gray layout) different from a normal mode. In another embodiment wheren may be an integer of 2 or more and the maximum n items are associatedwith the user A as the second game content, the n items associated withthe user A as the second game content are all borrowed items, thereception of the user operation on the borrow button 24 may betemporarily stopped, and the borrow button 24 may be displayed in a mode(gray layout) different from the normal mode.

Thereafter, for example, after all the users included in the user groupmay have been in the established state, upon receiving the useroperation on the start button 25, the terminal control unit 21 maytransmit a request for start of the first game part to the serverapparatus 11. Upon receiving the request for start of the first gamepart from the terminal device 12 of the user A, the server control unit15 may start the first game part.

The server control unit 15 determines whether or not the users A to Csucceeded or failed in achieving the complete task of the first gamepart. In a case where it is determined that the users neither succeedednor failed in achieving the complete task, the server control unit 15continues to execute the first game part. On the other hand, in a casewhere it is determined that the users succeeded or failed in achievingthe complete task, the server control unit 15 may end the first gamepart and may cancel the association between each of the users A to C andthe second game content. Therefore, the item C borrowed from the user Bby the user A may be returned to the user B.

When the first game part is ended, the server control unit 15 may grantpredetermined rewards to the users A to C, for example, on the basis ofsuccess or failure in achievement of the complete task. The servercontrol unit 15 may transmit a display instruction of displaying aresult screen to each of the terminal devices 12 of the users A to C.The result screen may be a screen on which, for example, information onthe processing result of the first game part (for example, success orfailure in achievement of the complete task and contents of the rewardsor the like) may be displayed.

The result screen displayed on the terminal device 12 of the user Aborrowing the item from the user B may include, for example, theinformation 30 on the second game part, the Yes button 31, the No button32, as illustrated in FIG. 10.

The information 30 on the second game part may include, for example, animage of the item C, a message indicating that the item C may have beenreturned to the user B, and a message asking whether or not to start thesecond game part.

The Yes button 31 may be a GUI for receiving user operation to start thesecond game part. The terminal control unit 21 may transmit a requestfor start of the second game part to the server apparatus 11 in responseto the user operation on the Yes button 31. Upon receiving the requestfor start of the second game part, the server control unit 15 may startthe second game part. The server control unit 15 can assign the user Aan item being the same as or having a predetermined relationship withthe item C according to the processing result of the second game part.

Next, the operation flow of the server apparatus 11 may be describedwith reference to FIG. 11.

Step S100: First, the server control unit 15 may store information onvarious game content, information on a plurality of users, andinformation on various game parts in the server storage unit.

Step S101: Subsequently, the server control unit 15 may perform amatching process of matching two or more users who play the first gamepart. For example, users A to C may be matched by the matchingprocessing.

Step S102: Subsequently, upon receiving the first signal from each ofthe terminal devices 12 of the users A to C, the server control unit 15may establish association between each of the users A to C and thesecond game content. Herein, it may be assumed that the second gamecontent of which association with the user A may be establishedaccording to the second signal from the user A may be a borrowed itemwhich may be borrowed from the user B (item C).

Step S103: Subsequently, for example, upon receiving the request forstart of the first game part from the terminal device 12 of the user A,the server control unit 15 may start the first game part.

Step S104: Subsequently, when the first game part may be ended, theserver control unit 15 may cancel the association between each of theusers A to C and the second game content.

Step S105: Subsequently, the server control unit 15 may allow theterminal device 12 of the user A who may have played the first game partby using the borrowed item to display information on the second gamepart.

Step S106: Subsequently, upon receiving the request for start of thesecond game part from the terminal device 12 of the user A, the servercontrol unit 15 may start the second game part.

Step S107: The server control unit 15 assigns the user A the item beingthe same as or having a predetermined relationship with the item Caccording to the processing result of the second game part.

As described above, the server apparatus 11 according to the embodimentmay execute the first game part on the basis of the second game contentof which association with each of the matched two or more users may beestablished and the user operation on the two or more terminal devices12 used by the two or more users. Herein, the second game contentassociated with the first user among the two or more users may be a gamecontent selected from among a plurality of the first game contentassociated with the first user and a plurality of the first game contentassociated with the second user among the two or more users. Accordingto such a configuration, the first user can play the first game part byborrowing the first game content owned by the second user. Therefore,since the first user can use the game content that may not be owned bythe first user through the first game part, the first user can be givena motivation for performing the multi-player.

In addition, according to the above-described configuration, it may bepossible to correct an unbalance in strength among the users who performmulti-player. Namely, in a game where a game content such as an item maybe used, in general, a user who may be skilled in the game, for example,may have a relatively long game play time, and may have a stronger (thatis, more advantageous to the user) item. According to the serverapparatus 11 according to the embodiment, for example, a beginner of thegame can play the first game part by borrowing a relatively strong itemfrom an expert in the game. For this reason, it may be possible for abeginner of the game to advantageously play the first game part byborrowing a strong item which cannot be obtained, for example, based onthe beginner's own progress in the game thus far. On the other hand,even if another user participating in a multi-player mode is a beginner,an expert of the game may allow another user to become an effectivefighting force by lending a strong item. Therefore, even if the user maybe a beginner or an expert, the user can be given a motivation forperforming multi-player. In addition, since the opportunities for thebeginner and the expert to play multi-player are increased,communication between the beginners and the experts may be facilitated.

Although the invention may have been described with reference to thedrawings and the embodiments, it should be noted that those skilled inthe art can easily make various may change and modifications on thebasis of the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be noted thatthese may change and modifications are within the scope of theinvention. For example, functions and the like included in means, steps,or the like can be relocated so as not to be logically contradictory,and a plurality of the means, the steps, or the like may be combinedinto one or may be divided.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration wherethe first user may be a user of which association with the second gamecontent may have not been established may have been described.Therefore, in the above-described embodiment, a plurality of the firstusers may exist simultaneously. For this reason, for example, in a casewhere a plurality of the first users want to borrow the same item, onlythe user who has transmitted the request for borrowing the item earliermay be able to borrow the item. In another embodiment, the servercontrol unit 15 may select one user, which may be selected on the basisof information on two or more matched users from among the users ofwhich association with the second game content may have not beenestablished, as the first user. For example, on the basis of the historyinformation included in the information on the user, the server controlunit 15 determines one user having the smallest number of times ofacquisition or the smallest acquisition frequency of the game content asthe first user. According to such a configuration, in a case where gamecontent a plurality of users have not established an association withthe second game content, for example, the borrow request for borrowingitems can be transmitted in order from the user having less acquisitionexperience of the game content, so that it may be possible to improve asense of impartiality among the users.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, it may be described thatthe first game part may be a game part in which a plurality of userscooperatively play a battle against a common opponent. However, thefirst game part may be a game part in which a plurality of users play abattle against each other. In such a case, since the users who play abattle against each other can lend and borrow items, for example, adifference in strength between the users who play a battle against eachother may be reduced, so that the interest in the match may be improved.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the history informationmay include information on other users who borrowed items of the userand information on other users who lent items to the user. On the basisof the history information, the server control unit 15 may allow a GUIfor receiving user operation for associating users with each other to beprovided on the terminal devices 12 of the users who lent and borrowedthe items. For example, the association between users may includeone-way or two-way association between users, such as follow-up,followers, and friends in so-called SNS or the like. For example, in acase where the user A and the user B are associated with each other, inresponse to the request from the terminal device 12 of the user A, theserver control unit 15 may transmit a request for participation to theuser group including the user A to the terminal device 12 of the user B.Upon receiving information indicating approval of participation in theuser group from the terminal device 12 of the user B, the server controlunit 15 may add the user B to the user group. In this manner, sinceusers associated with each other are easily included in the same usergroup, communication between the users can be facilitated.

In addition, for example, the server control unit 15 may determine theranking such as the number of times of lending items or the number oftimes of borrowing items, for example, on the basis of the historyinformation. In response to the request from the terminal device 12, theserver control unit 15 may allow at least a portion of the determinedranking to be displayed on the terminal device 12. In addition, forexample, in a case where the number of times of lending items or thenumber of times of borrowing items exceeds a predetermined value, theserver control unit 15 may grant the user, for example, a game contentor virtual coins as a reward, for example, on the basis of the historyinformation. According to such a configuration, the user can be furthergiven a motivation for performing multi-player.

In addition, in the embodiment described above, a configuration may havebeen described where, when the server control unit 15 receives therequest for addition to the user group from the terminal device 12 ofthe user, the server control unit 15 may display the information on oneor more user groups selected from among the plurality of user groups onthe terminal device 12 of the user and the user may be allowed to selectone of the user groups. Herein, the information on one or more usergroups displayed on the terminal device 12 may include, for example, theinformation on each user included in each user group. In addition, forexample, the information on one or more user groups may include theinformation on at least one item which can be associated with each useras the first game content excluding the item that may be the second gamecontent of which association with each user included in each user groupmay be established. According to such a configuration, when allowing auser to select any one of the user groups, the user can be allowed torecognize borrowable items, so that the usability of the game may beimproved.

Herein, when displaying the information on one or more user groups onthe terminal device 12 of the user, the server control unit 15 maydisplay the information on the user group including users who may havebeen lent and borrowed items with respect to the user in a modedifferent from a normal mode on the basis of the history information.The mode different from the normal mode may include any display modethat can be distinguished from the normal display mode such as a mode ofdisplaying with changing display color or a mode of flashing display.According to such a configuration, since the user can recognize otherusers who lent and borrowed items in the past at a glance, the usabilitymay be improved.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the terminal device 12may execute a portion or all of the operations and processes executed bythe server apparatus 11. Similarly, the server apparatus 11 may executea portion of the operations executed by the terminal device 12. Forexample, processes such as display control of various screens displayedon the terminal device 12 and control of various GUIs may be executed byeither the server apparatus 11 or the terminal device 12, and the serverapparatus 11 and the terminal device 12 may be executed in cooperation.

In the above-described embodiment, a portion of various game screens maybe displayed as a web display on the terminal device 12 on the basis ofdata generated by the server apparatus 11, and a portion of a gamescreen (for example, menu buttons are arranged in a header area and afooter area) displayed by a native application installed in the terminaldevice 12 may be displayed as a native display. In this manner, the gameaccording to the above-described embodiment can be a hybrid game inwhich each of the server apparatus 11 and the terminal device 12 may bea portion of the processes.

In addition, in order to make it function as the server apparatus 11 orthe terminal device 12 according to the above-described embodiment, aninformation processing device such as a computer or a cellular phone canbe preferably used. Such an information processing device can berealized by storing, in a storage unit of the information processingdevice, a program describing contents of processes for realizingfunctions of the server apparatus 11 or the terminal device 12 accordingto the embodiment and by reading and executing the program by a CPU ofthe information processing device.

What is claimed is:
 1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising program code that, when executed, causes a server apparatus providing a game to a plurality of terminal devices used by a plurality of users to execute: a step of retrieving, for each user in the plurality of users, game content associated with said user, first game content associated with a first user in the plurality of users and second game content associated with a second user in the plurality of users; a selection providing step of providing, on a graphical user interface of a terminal device of the first user, a set of selectable game content comprising the first game content and second game content; a selection receiving step of receiving, from the set of selectable game content, a selection of first-user game content, the selection of first-user game content comprising second game content, and pairing the first-user game content with the first user; a step of executing a first game part common to the two or more users jointly for the two or more users, the first-user game content being associated with the first user during the first game part; and a step of ending the first game part, and, as a result of ending the first game part, canceling the pairing between the first user and the second game content.
 2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, further comprising program code configured to cause the server apparatus to perform: identifying, for the first game part, an advantageous game content property; determining at least one instance of game content having the advantageous game content property; and providing, in the set of selectable game content, the at least one instance of game content having the advantageous game content property.
 3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the advantageous game content property is an advantageous item type, said advantageous item type providing an advantage in performing at least one game task contained within the first game part.
 4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the advantageous game content property is an advantageous attribute, said advantageous attribute being a weakness of at least one enemy character contained within the first game part.
 5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the advantageous game content property matches a property of a character associated with the first user.
 6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 5, wherein the first-user game content is equipped by the character associated with the first user.
 7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the first game content in the set of selectable game content is less than all game content associated with the first user and wherein the second game content in the set of selectable game content is less than all game content associated with the second user; and wherein the server control unit preferentially selects, as the first game content and as the second game content, instances of game content having the advantageous game content property.
 8. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, further comprising program code configured to cause the server apparatus to perform: a step of automatically selecting, from a greater plurality of users, the plurality of users, prior to the step of retrieving the first game content and second game content; wherein the step of automatically selecting the plurality of users is based on at least one game content property of at least one user in the plurality of users.
 9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 8, wherein the step of automatically selecting the plurality of users is based on the second user in the plurality of users having an advantageous item type.
 10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 8, wherein the step of automatically selecting the plurality of users is based on the first user in the plurality of users lacking an advantageous item type.
 11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 8, wherein the step of automatically selecting the plurality of users is based on history information associated with at least one of the plurality of users.
 12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of users comprises at least three users, and further comprising program code configured to cause the server apparatus to perform: a step of determining, prior to pairing the first-user game content with the first user, based on a comparison of the first-user game content and game content selected by a third user, that the first-user game content and the game content selected by the third user are the same; and wherein pairing the first-user game content with the first user rather than the third user is based on a stored history of the use of the first-user game content by the first user and the third user.
 13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the step of ending the first game part further comprises providing a reward based on a stored history of the first-user game content.
 14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, further comprising program code configured to cause the server apparatus to perform: a step of establishing a pairing between an instance of second game content and the second user; and a step of excluding the instance of second game content from the set of selectable game content.
 15. A server apparatus providing a game to a plurality of terminal devices used by a plurality of users, comprising: a storage unit which stores game content in association with each of the plurality of users; and a control unit, the control unit configured to execute: a step of retrieving, for each user in the plurality of users, game content associated with said user, first game content associated with a first user in the plurality of users and second game content associated with a second user in the plurality of users; a selection providing step of providing, on a graphical user interface of a terminal device of the first user, a set of selectable game content comprising the first game content and second game content; a selection receiving step of receiving, from the set of selectable game content, a selection of first-user game content, the selection of first-user game content comprising second game content, and pairing the first-user game content with the first user; a step of executing a first game part common to the two or more users jointly for the two or more users, the first-user game content being associated with the first user during the first game part; and a step of ending the first game part, and, as a result of ending the first game part, canceling the pairing between the first user and the second game content.
 16. The server apparatus of claim 15, wherein the control unit is further configured to execute: identifying, for the first game part, an advantageous game content property; determining at least one instance of game content having the advantageous game content property; and providing, in the set of selectable game content, the at least one instance of game content having the advantageous game content property.
 17. The server apparatus of claim 15, wherein the control unit is further configured to execute: a step of automatically selecting, from a greater plurality of users, the plurality of users, prior to the step of retrieving the first game content and second game content; wherein the step of automatically selecting the plurality of users is based on at least one game content property of at least one user in the plurality of users.
 18. A game system comprising: a plurality of terminal devices respectively used by a plurality of users; and a server apparatus providing a game to the plurality of terminal devices, wherein the server apparatus is configured to execute: a step of retrieving, for each user in the plurality of users, game content associated with said user, first game content associated with a first user in the plurality of users and second game content associated with a second user in the plurality of users; a selection providing step of providing, on a graphical user interface of a terminal device of the first user, a set of selectable game content comprising the first game content and second game content; a selection receiving step of receiving, from the set of selectable game content, a selection of first-user game content, the selection of first-user game content comprising second game content, and pairing the first-user game content with the first user; a step of executing a first game part common to the two or more users jointly for the two or more users, the first-user game content being associated with the first user during the first game part; and a step of ending the first game part, and, as a result of ending the first game part, canceling the pairing between the first user and the second game content.
 19. The game system of claim 18, wherein the server apparatus is further configured to execute: identifying, for the first game part, an advantageous game content property; determining at least one instance of game content having the advantageous game content property; and providing, in the set of selectable game content, the at least one instance of game content having the advantageous game content property.
 20. The game system of claim 18, wherein the server apparatus is further configured to execute: a step of automatically selecting, from a greater plurality of users, the plurality of users, prior to the step of retrieving the first game content and second game content; wherein the step of automatically selecting the plurality of users is based on at least one game content property of at least one user in the plurality of users. 